Humanity pays for the ability to walk on two legs with back pain.If your back regularly hurts your lower back, it could be a sign of extreme fatigue or the result of being in an uncomfortable position for a long time while working or sleeping.But the reasons can be more serious.
Causes of pain
The lower back is one of the most painful areas.There are reasons for this:
- Osteochondrosis;
- Scoliosis;
- Disc herniation;
- Tumors;
- Infectious tissue lesions.
The nature and intensity of pain depends on the disease.And it bothers you in different ways: after sleep, training, overtime.For example, renal colic is constantly accompanied by lower back pain.And the patient's activity is irrelevant here.
- Most often, it hurts the lower back due to osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine.The pain is moderate in intensity during sleep and intensifies with physical stress.Feeling tired all the time.The feeling of heaviness makes you want to lie down.But the relief does not always come after this.
- If there is a herniated disc, severe pain occurs after sudden movements, lifting heavy objects or falling.
- If the hernia is compressed, acute pain occurs, characterized as lumbodynia.Movement in the lower back is noticeably limited.Damage to the nerve root also causes pain in the leg.
- In old age, stenosis of the intervertebral canal occurs quite often.A sign of it is lameness, numbness in the legs, especially after a long walk.
- Stiffness of the spine that occurs in the morning indicates the beginning of the development of ankylosing spondylitis.Initially, sharp pain sensations occur in the sacral area, after which they spread to the lumbar region.The feeling after sleep is not of rest, but of fatigue, which disappears with the onset of physical activity.Young men are most susceptible to the disease.The disease is hereditary.Most of the time, the lower back hurts when you lie down.
- Acute pain in the lower back also occurs with pyelonephritis (inflammatory process in the kidneys).They are accompanied by increased body temperature and swelling in the morning after sleep.
- Often older men develop a disease such as an abdominal aortic aneurysm.Pain and pulsation in the abdomen are the result of pressure from the aorta on nearby organs.
- Pain in the lower back, fever, burning along the nerve are signs of herpes zoster.This viral disease affects the cells of the spinal cord.A pink rash appears on the body, and later blisters appear.
- Another widespread disease that many consider harmless is flat feet.A deformed foot increases the load on the spine when walking.During sleep, the pain subsides.
- If there are congenital changes in the vertebrae: irregular shape or changes in the gap, then sooner or later they will manifest themselves.
- Autoimmune pathologies, especially multiple sclerosis, are provocateurs of pain of various localizations.Including pain in the lower back.
There are other reasons why there is severe pain in the lower back.This can be osteoporosis, infections in the genitourinary system, hemorrhoids, tumor diseases, complications after viral or bacterial infections.And even physiological changes that affect women and occur during pregnancy and childbirth.
Pain caused by diseases of internal organs
When you wonder why your back hurts in the lower back, it is sometimes hard to believe that the causes can also be inside the organs.The fact is that in some cases, pain from internal organs is "referred" to the lumbar region.
- Right-sided pleuritis, pneumonia are the causes of pain in the lower back on the right.Associated symptoms: cough, shortness of breath, fever.Left-sided pneumonia sends pain signals to the left side of the lower back, which is amplified when you bend over or lie down during sleep.
- Gallstone disease also localizes sharp pains on the right, just above the lower back, and they are accompanied by belching and nausea.They have a stinging character.
- Shingles pain in the lower back occurs due to pancreatitis.Her companions are nausea and vomiting.
- Severe pain under the left shoulder blade is often the result of a myocardial infarction.
- For men, pathology of the prostate gland causes pain in the area below the lower back, with transition to the sacrum.In women - cystitis.
- Diseases of the distal alimentary canal cause pain below the lower back.
Pain provocateurs
Factors such as:
- Hypothermia of the body.
- Intense physical activity.
- Certain sports (bodybuilding, bodybuilding, weightlifting, weightlifting).
- Muscle tension.
- Fraud.
- Menstrual cycle in women.
- Poor nutrition.
- Stress.
- Uncomfortable position during sleep.
Back pain in the lower back in children
New technologies have brought not only benefits to our world, but also harm.Why?Because love for a computer from an early age deprives children of full motor activity and creates incorrect posture.
Important: If you choose the right chair and table for your child to study, curvature of the spine can be avoided!
Scoliosis can develop from carrying a heavy backpack, flat feet or uncomfortable shoes.Be sure to treat him!Excessive physical activity and heavy lifting are contraindicated for children.When participating in a sports department, be especially sensitive to your child's complaints of back pain after exercise.It could be a herniated disc.Timely treatment will allow the child to live a full life.
Types of pain
The nature of pain is divided into the following types:
- Spasms in the long back muscles cause severe pain.This happens due to stretching.The problem is familiar to athletes and people whose specific occupations involve stress on the back muscles.When you lie down, the pain subsides a little.The main location is the lower back.
- Spinal cord injury, namely a fracture, is very dangerous.It can arise from an unsuccessful fall or be a consequence of osteoporosis, Paget's disease, hyperparathyroidism.
- Displacement of the intervertebral discs causes pain due to compression of the nerve roots.For this reason, the patient's mobility is limited, sensitivity is reduced, and the knee reflex is reduced.The danger of this disease is also that healthy vertebrae begin to hurt, and this causes disturbances in the functioning of the internal organs and causes restless sleep.
- Facet joint syndrome causes back pain in 31% of cases.This degenerative process affects the capsule of the intervertebral joints and causes pain not only in the lower back, but also in the legs.The lower back hurts when you sit, when you bend sideways or backward, or when you stand for a long time.
- An inflammatory process of an infectious nature in the epidural space is a very serious and dangerous disease.It can be fatal if treatment is not started immediately.
Treatment
Seeing a doctor right away when you have back pain is the key to successful treatment.Even if the pain only bothers you at night or after sleep, there is a reason to visit a specialist.
After analyzing the causes, the doctor will give recommendations on how to treat and not get sick.The treatment will be comprehensive with the use of ointments, tablets, injections, massage and physiotherapy.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are in first place in the treatment of low back pain:
- In the initial phase, literally in the first 3-5 days, the treatment is carried out using injections to relieve pain and inflammation.They work quickly and effectively relieve acute pain by directly injecting the medicine into the blood or muscle.
- After that, anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving tablets, chondroprotectors and irritant drugs are used (in each case separately).
- In addition, ointment treatment is used.A correctly selected ointment helps to relieve inflammation in the affected area and also warms (if necessary).
Reflex muscle tension is relieved using muscle relaxants.With their help, pain is treated and mobility is restored.Apply from 3 to 7 days.
Vitamin preparations of group B are a necessary addition to the main therapy.
In some cases, a medication blockade is necessary.The anesthetic is administered epidurally or paravertebrally.Used for degenerative changes in the spine.
Physiotherapy treatment:
- UHF;
- Electrophoresis;
- Magnetotherapy.
Massage relieves acute pain by improving blood circulation.Kneading the muscles has a beneficial effect on the elasticity and suppleness of the ligaments.To increase the overall tone of the body, and only with the permission of the attending physician, massage is combined with a bath or sauna.You cannot warm up during an infection process!
Pain during pregnancy can be relieved by wearing a special bandage.
For patients with flat feet, it is mandatory to wear orthopedic insoles.
Therapeutic exercise
Exercise is also a treatment.They strengthen the back muscles, improve posture, increase muscle tone and increase blood circulation.They are used not only in the complex of therapeutic therapy, but also for the prevention of pain in the lower back.As in the case of drug therapy, therapeutic exercises are prescribed in each case individually, analyzing the main causes of the disease.But you can highlight several general exercises, each of which is performed 5-10 times, preferably in the morning, to avoid overexertion.
- In a standing position, tilt the body alternately to the right, forward, backward, left.
- In a standing position, with your feet shoulder-width apart, turn your body to the sides.
- In a position on all fours, make a "cat": arch your back at the lumbar.
- Lying on your back, bend your knees, arms along your body.Raise and lower the pelvis, gradually increasing the range of motion.
- Lying on your back, legs straight, arms along the body.Alternately bend your knees and then pull them toward your chest.
- Stand on all fours, swing your legs alternately.
Regardless of the causes, only a specialist can determine why the back hurts, identify the "culprit" of the disease and prescribe the correct and effective treatment.As with any other illness, you should not self-medicate!Any drug can not only treat, but also harm if it is chosen incorrectly.